Updated Joint Cyber Defense Collaborative priorities unveiled

CyberScoop reports that strengthening defenses against advanced persistent threat operations, bolstering the cybersecurity baseline of critical infrastructure organizations, and addressing risks associated with emerging technologies, have been noted by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency as key priorities for the Joint Cyber Defense Collaborative in 2024. Significant updates in policy and cyber operations will be introduced to the National Cyber Incident Plan this year to better counter APTs, according to CISA, which is also mulling a "discover and defend" strategy against Chinese state-sponsored operations and other nation-state attackers. Aside from advancing secure-by-design principles to curb ransomware attacks against critical infrastructure, CISA also looks to mitigate artificial intelligence risks against such entities. "Even as we urgently work to help organizations implement the most effective cybersecurity measures, we know that scalable change requires a fundamental shift in how technology is designed, built, and maintained. We will continue to drive measurable commitments across the technology ecosystem that reduce the number of defective technology products by design and ensure that strong default settings are the norm," said CISA Associate Director Clayton Romans.